


Sunsets

by NightPurity



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Fluff, Gen, He isn't the only one, Hurt/Comfort, Lance Misses Sunsets, Some angst, Team Bonding, not much i promise, what even are tags?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 02:11:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11749902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightPurity/pseuds/NightPurity
Summary: Sunsets, a blend of colors, always different at the end of every day.It faded from a splash of warm colors to the cool shades of night, as if wiping away the day's stress and clearing it to prepare for the next morning.But...There isn't anything like that out in space, in war.Sometimes though, there are those rare moments.This time, they can witness it together, and share what it means to them with each other.





	Sunsets

**Author's Note:**

> This isn't much angst, and those who know me know I can't pass up at least a little bit of angst.
> 
> The Team Bonding seriously needed, and this is also a gift for Skitt, Happy birthday c:

 

Lance has always loved the sunset, the warm colors fading to the dark and cool shades of night, how something beautiful lead to something equally beautiful. It was the transition from day to night, the fade of the day’s colors and stress meeting the growing dark that lead to rest and recollecting.

 

Now, however, there were no sunsets, no fading to darker blues to the night sky, no breathless moment of tranquil peace.

 

None.

 

Just endless stars, planets, moons, suns, solar systems. 

 

Galaxies upon galaxies, each one bringing hardship, battle,  _ Death _ .

 

Heavy shoulders, tired movements, ache not only physical but emotional.

 

Mental strain, no time to grieve, no time to come to terms with it.

 

No escape from war.

 

There was no refreshing end to a day, no bleeding of colors that would wash away with the incoming night, no way to pretend the night would wash away the day’s aches and pains to leave a clean slate for the next day.

 

Just endless battling, rescuing, risking, hurting, resting, only to battle, rescue, risk all over again.

 

Everything weighed so much, there was so much crushing weight, so much worry, so much stress, so much  _ fear _ .

 

“Lance?” Jolting a bit, Lance turned to see Keith, the red paladin looked rather uncomfortable, and if it wasn’t for the surprise, Lance would have noticed the blurry vision sooner, the uncomfortable crushing in his chest, he would have been able to notice his breath refusing to enter his lungs sooner. “A-Are you okay man?”

 

“I- yeah, I’m fine.” Lance said, quickly whiping his head around and wiping his eyes as the liquid tried to fall. “I’m fine, just- just amazed by the view you know?” 

 

There was silence for a while, before Keith suddenly, and awkwardly, shuffled closer.

 

“Yeah… It’s almost like the sunsets on earth.” Keith said and Lance snapped his gaze up to the window, previously before he was lost in thought, the sky of the planet was still a greenish pink, now it was a faded green with orange, purple, and blues.

 

It wasn’t really like the ones on earth, but it was close.

 

“... It is, isn’t it.” Lance said, voice heavy, but this time, he fought back his feelings, pushing the loneliness, the homesickness, the  _ hurt _ back, far enough he could pretend it wasn’t there. As rare a moment it is to have time to relax and just  _ be _ , Lance hated them sometimes.

 

Sure, he could get more sleep, only to be haunted by nightmares. He could train, but then he’d end up sore, and the pains sending vague feelings of burning across his back though he doesn’t know why.

 

He hated these moments sometimes, because it gave him time to think, to think and remember, nothing that made adrenaline course through his veins, no survival instincts or strategies locking out what he hated acknowledging.

 

He wasn’t clueless, he knew the ships they took out didn’t just hold mindless sentries, not just robots or hunks of metal. He  _ knew _ that there were  _ living, breathing beings who could fear, who could hurt and suffer _ .

 

But, during battle, with no room to feel regret, to feel guilt, to feel the weight of ending lives-

 

“Lance? Hey, uh, you need-” Keith’s voice suddenly cut through his thoughts, and despite how embarrassed Lance felt, he was glad. Talking, fighting, bickering, joking, flirting, anything to keep his mind from those thoughts was welcomed.

 

“I’m… I’m okay-I’m fine.” Lance waved it off, and though Keith looked unconvinced, he let it drop. Lance was pretty sure the other man’s uncomfortability with emotions- his or another's- kept him from pushing.

 

“Sunsets… They feel like everything is being wiped clean, like all that happened in the day is being cleared by the night. Emptying the weight for the next day.” Lance didn’t know why he said it, perhaps it was to keep the roaring noise in his mind unintelligible, to focus on something other than the negativity trying to drown him, to chain him down with heavy metal shackles.

 

“... Yeah, I guess it does. I never really thought of it that way.” Keith replied, and despite that they usually couldn’t really be civil towards one another, Keith kept talking. “I always felt it just melted away for something new to look at, something that didn’t feel so heavy to handle.”

 

It was vague, but Lance didn’t miss the meaning.

 

_ It helped to chase away the fears and insecurity the day brought, making room for silence and unknown stars to capture one’s attention, to distract them from the crushing weight of reality. _

 

“Yeah…” Lance was quiet for a moment, not long because the noise roaring in his mind began to sound like words. “I always thought it felt freeing, like I could finally let go of everything, just long enough to prepare for it all again… I can’t really do that here.”

 

Keith sucked in a harsh breath, something pained and strangled that Lance was almost worried that he was injured, before Keith started to speak, only to be cut off.

 

“It gave me hope.” Turning, they both caught sight of Pidge, dark circles under their eyes and their laptop hanging heavily in their arms. Hunk wasn’t far behind as he and Pidge moved to join the two, Pidge having been done with fiddling with the local tech they had been allowed to have, and Hunk just returning from the planet, he and Shiro had followed Allura around for diplomacy and backup should things go south.

 

“I always regarded the sunsetting as the day ending, all that I had to do was done for then and I could sleep.” Hunk added and Lance and Keith watched the two for a bit before Lance leaned against Hunk, Pidge cuddling up to Lance’s other side.

 

“I couldn’t look for Dad or Matt, or any information on them during the day, it was a relief from pretending, from lying and struggling.” Pidge whispered, and Hunk tugged Keith to join them, ignoring the uncertainty on Keith’s face.

 

“It’s… Not always just colors…” Lance muttered and after a brief pause, Lance continued. 

 

“It… Its one of the things I miss about earth.” 

 

“... We all miss it.” Keith jolted when everyone turned to him before shaking his head, before it registered.

 

“Shiro-”

 

“I thought you were with Allura-”

 

“Why is everyone keen on startling me today?”

 

“You’re easily startled.”

 

“Shut up mullet!”

 

“Hey, hey, enough.” Shiro chided softly and everyone quieted down as their leader and friend walked up to them, sitting behind Hunk and Lance, resting his left arm on Hunk’s shoulder.

 

“We all miss it. There so much to miss, but… all we have to do, is remember…”

 

There wasn’t much time where they could just sit and bond like this, where it was natural, easy, and  _ needed _ like this. It was a rare moment, and this… This was a first. This was the closest they’ve all gotten, and despite how somber the mood was, this was so important... This was comforting, and while it wouldn’t chase all the negativity away, or the fear or pain, it did help lessen it, even if by a bit.

 

This warmth, this feeling it’s nothing like they could have ever thought to experience.

 

_ “We have each other.” _

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, and I'm sorry I'm really not a good author, but I'm working on writing better.


End file.
